General Information

Author/Creator

Bobrick, Benson, 1947-

Language

English.

Published

New York : Simon & Schuster, 2012.

Physical Description

x, 284 p., [8] p. of plates : ill. (some col.), maps ; 25 cm.

Contents/Summary

Summary

During the caliphate of Harun al-Rashid, Islam dominated much of the known world, from the Atlantic Ocean to China. Harun's capital, Baghdad, was the most cosmopolitan metropolis of the era. In this magnificent work of history, acclaimed scholar Benson Bobrick resurrects Harun's glorious world and the complex, pervasive influence it had on its neighbors in the Byzantine Empire and the Frankish kingdom of Harun's contemporary Charlemagne. Harun's power was checked by the Byzantine Empire, with its capital at Constantinople, and Charlemagne's European kingdom. Yet along with conflict went cultural exchange. In fact, it was the preservation and development of classical learning by the Muslims that lighted the lamp of knowledge in the West during the so-called Dark Ages when Europe fell into ruin. The Caliph's Splendor brings this history to vivid life with wide-reaching implications for today's interconnected world.--from the publisher

Subjects

Subject

Hārūn al-Rashīd, Caliph, approximately 763-809.

Charlemagne, Emperor, 742-814.

Islam > Relations > Christianity.

Islamic Empire > Foreign relations > Byzantine Empire.

Byzantine Empire > Foreign relations > Islamic Empire.

Islamic Empire > History > 750-1258.

Byzantine Empire > History > 527-1081.

Bibliographic Information

Responsibility

Benson Bobrick.

Content

Minaret and tower -- The night of destiny -- King of kings -- Baghdad -- The culture of prosperity -- al-Andalus -- Greek fire -- Lombards, Saxons, and a poisoned crown -- "Iron Charles" -- Even the lowliest camel driver knew -- The harder they fall -- "Rum" and Khurasan -- The red soil of Tus -- The Siege of Baghdad -- Interregnum -- "Oval, square, and round" -- "City of the flower" -- Turban and cowl -- Appendix. The Umayyad caliphs of Damascus and the Abbasid caliphs of Baghdad.

ISBN

9781416567622

1416567623

Holdings

Item Type	Current Location	Collection	Call Number	Volume Info	Shelving Location	Public Note
Book	OSA Archivum Library	General collection	327.53049509/021 BOB		OSA Repository	Donation of School of Public Policy.

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